Just Plain Good Quotes That Are Sure To Touch a Note with You

I am sure that there is much to be argued about in terms of what are the world’s greatest quotes. But perhaps there is more common ground on what constitutes an undeniably “good quote.” These are sayings that seem to universally strike a chord – many of which have stood the test of time.

I have compiled a list of such words. I hope you will agree that they are good quotes, and may they strike a special chord in you.

The Best Good Quotes To Live By

1.) “You are the antibodies kicking in as the planet fights its fever.” – Bill Mckibben

2.) “My mother said to me, ‘If you are a soldier, you will become a general. If you are a monk, you will become the Pope.’ Instead, I was a painter, and became Picasso.”- Pablo Picasso (Artist, 1881-1973)

3.) “Nothing in this world can take the place of persistence.

Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful people with talent.

6.) “I think education is power. I think that being able to communicate with people is power. One of my main goals on the planet is to encourage people to empower themselves.”- Oprah Winfrey (Business woman, 1954-)

7.) “Until you’re ready to look foolish, you’ll never have the possibility of being great.”- Cher (Singer, actress, producer, 1946-)

8.) “The slogan ‘press on’ has solved and always will solve the problems of the human race.”- Calvin Coolidge (30th U.S. president, 1872-1933)

9.) “The only thing that I have done that is not mitigated by luck, diminished by good fortune, is that I persisted, and other people gave up.”- Harrison Ford (actor 1942-)

10.) “Many of life’s failures are people who did not realize how close they were to success when they gave up.”- Thomas Edison (Inventor, 1847-1931)

11.) “Keep away from people who try to belittle your dreams. Small people always do that, but the really great ones make you feel that you, too, can become great.”- Mark Twain (Writer, lecturer, 1935-1910)

12.) “People hurt you over and over, think of them like sandpaper. They may scratch and hurt you a bit, but in the end, you end up polished and they end up useless.”- Chris Colfer (Actor, singer, 1990-)

13.) “Integrity is not a conditional word. It doesn’t blow in the wind or change with the weather. It is your inner image of yourself, and if you look in there and see a man who won’t cheat, then you know he never will.”- John D. MacDonald (Novelist, 1916-1986)

14.) “Nearly all men can stand adversity, but if you want to test a man’s character, give him power.” – Abraham Lincoln (16th U.S. president, 1809-1865)

15.) “I am afraid we must make the world honest before we can honestly say to our children that honesty is the best policy.”- George Bernard Shaw (Playright, 1856-1950)

17.) “As a leader, you have to not only do the right thing, but be perceived to be doing the right thing. A consequence of seeking a leadership position is being put under intense public scrutiny, being held to high standards, and enhancing a reputation that is constantly under threat.”— Jeffrey Sonnenfeld and Andrew Ward (Firing Back)

18.) “In looking for people to hire, you look for three qualities: integrity, intelligence, and energy. And if they don’t have the first, the other two will kill you.”- Warren Buffett (Businessman, 1930-)

Motivational and Uplifting Quotes for Everyday

19.) “Surround yourself with only people who are going to lift you higher.”- Oprah Winfrey (Business woman)

21.) “When I was 5 years old, my mother always told me that happiness was the key to life. When I went to school, they asked me what I wanted to be when I grew up. I wrote down “happy.” They told me I didn’t understand the assignment, and I told them they didn’t understand life.”- John Lennon (Singer, songwriter, 1940-1980)

22.) “Live so that when your children think of fairness, caring, and integrity, they think of you.”- H. Jackson Brown, Jr. (American author)

24.) “The simple act of paying attention can take you a long way.”- Keanu Reeves (Actor, 1964-)

25.) “Winners lose more than losers. They win and lose more than losers, because they stay in the game.”- Terry Paulson (Psychologist)

26.) “I’ve missed more than 9,000 shots in my career. I’ve lost almost 300 games. Twenty six times I’ve been trusted to take the game winning shot and missed. I’ve failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed.”- Michael Jordan (Athlete, 1963-)

27.) “It is better to play than do nothing.”- Confucius (Philosopher, 551 BC-479 BC)

36.) “People are always blaming their circumstances for what they are. I don’t believe in circumstances.The people who get on in this world are the people who get up and look for circumstances they want, and, if they can’t find them, make them.”- George Bernard Shaw (Playwright, critic, 1856-1950)

37.) “Change can come in either of two important ways: Start behaving positively or stop behaving negatively.” – Dr. Phil (TV host, 1950-)

Good Quotes about Life and Love

39.) “The secret of health for both mind and body is not to mourn for the past, not to worry about the future, or not to anticipate troubles, but to live in the present moment wisely and earnestly.”- Buddha (Founder of Buddhism, circa 563 BCE-483 BCE)

40.) “Then Jesus told them, ‘A prophet is honored everywhere except in his own hometown and among his own family.’”- Matthew 13:57

41.) “The other night I ate at a real nice family restaurant. Every table had an argument going.”- George Carlin (Comedian 1937-2008)

42.) “The first half of our lives is ruined by our parents and the second half by our children.”- Clarence Darrow (Attorney, 1857-1938)

43.) “The reason grandparents and grandchildren get along so well is that they have a common enemy.”- Sam Levenson (Writer, teacher 1911-1980)

45.) “All grow up with the weight of history on us. Our ancestors dwell in the attics of our brains as they do in the spiraling chains of knowledge hidden in every cell of our bodies.”- Shirley Abbott (Writer, 1934-)

46.) “Life is pretty simple: You do some stuff. Most fails. Some works. You do more of what works. If it works big, others quickly copy it. Then you do something else. The trick is the doing something else.”- Leonardo da Vinci (Artist, 1452-1519)

47.) “The man who leaves money to charity in his will is only giving away what no longer belongs to him.” –Voltaire (Writer, philosopher, 1694-1778)

51.) “A wedding is just like a funeral except that you get to smell your own flowers.”- Grace Hansen

52.) “The most beautiful people I’ve known are those who have known trials, have known struggles, have known loss, and have found their way out of the depths.”- Elisabeth Kübler-Ross (Psychiatrist, 1926-2004)

53.) “Grief does not change you… It reveals you.”- John Green (Author)

More Good Quotes for Inspiration

54.) “A well spent day brings happy sleep, so life well used brings happy death.”- Leonardo da Vinci (Artist, 1452-1519)

55.) “I would like to be remembered as a man who had a wonderful time living life, a man who had good friends, fine family — and I don’t think I could ask for anything more than that, actually.”- Frank Sinatra (Singer, 1915-1998)

56.) “The children have been a wonderful gift to me, and I’m thankful to have once again seen our world through their eyes. They restore my faith in the family’s future.”- Jacqueline Kennedy (First Lady, 1929-1994)

57.) “If you have built castles in the air, your work need not be lost; that is where they should be. Now put foundations under them.”- Henry David Thoreau (Essayist, 1843-1916)

58.) “Talent is cheaper than table salt. What separates the talented individual from the successful one is a lot of hard work.”- Stephen King (Novelist, screenwriter, film director, 1947-)

59.) “If you need something done ask as busy man, no one else will have time to do it.”- Unknown

60.) “His talent was as natural as the pattern that was made by the dust on a butterfly’s wings. At one time he understood it no more than the butterfly did and he did not know when it was brushed or marred.Later he became conscious of his damaged wings and of their construction and he learned to think and could not fly any more because the love of flight was gone and he could only remember when it had been effortless.”- Ernest Hemingway (Writer, 1899-1961)

61.) “That old law about ‘an eye for an eye’ leaves everybody blind. The time is always right to do the right thing.”- Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. (Activist, 1929-1968)

62.) “Don’t ever wrestle with a pig. You’ll both get dirty, but the pig will enjoy it.”- Cale Yarborough (NASCAR driver, 1939)

63.) “Be who you are and say what you feel, because those who mind don’t matter and those who matter don’t mind.”- Dr. Seuss

64.) “Your intellect may be confused, but your emotions will never lie to you.”- Roger Ebert (Film critic, historian, journalist)

65.) “If you think in terms of a year, plant a seed; if in terms of ten years, plant trees; if in terms of 100 years, teach the people.”- Confucius (Philosopher, 551 BC-479 BC)

Dr. Nikki Martinez received her Masters and her Doctorate from Illinois School of Professional Psychology, and completed her pre-doctoral and post-doctoral fellowship at Gateway Foundation in Lake Villa, Illinois. Head of Clinical Development for www.drnikkimartinez.com. She is an Adjunct Professor for 2 graduate programs, a Blogger for the Huffington Post, Older Dating, Success Stories, and a Contributor to the Chicago Tribune.